Flexicalymene

Flexicalymene is a genus of trilobites, which were extinct marine arthropods. These creatures lived during the Ordovician Period, approximately 505 to 438 million years ago. Trilobites are easily identified by their distinct three-lobed, three-segmented bodies.12

Flexicalymene, along with its close relative Calymene, is frequently found in the fossil record, often preserved in a tightly rolled state. This rolling behavior may have been a defensive mechanism to protect their vulnerable undersides or simply a position adopted upon death. Trilobites possessed an exoskeleton that they shed to grow, and these shed exoskeletons are common fossils.12